Abstract:
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This document attempts to outline the requirements for SWAT 2. In particular,
this is an attempt to bring together some ideas in order to stimulate though
about what exactly we want SWAT to do.
Introduction:
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Swat, as it exists in Samba 3 and before, is not significantly more than an
editor for smb.conf. The interface seems targeted at users who are already
familiar with smb.conf configuration.
For version 4 of the Samba suite, we would like to provide a swat that becomes
the definitive tool for configuring Samba. As this is a fairly difficult task,
it is imperative that a significant amount of thought is given to both the
internal structure and the user interface of Swat.
Current Issues:
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- swat completely destroys the current format of smb.conf. Any ordering of
parameters, comments, and whitespace formatting will be lost.
- though the wizard is very useful, it does not provide enough functionality
to setup a first time user. (e.g. the workgroup cannot be set in the wizard)
- in almost all configurations, many of the displayed params should be left
empty. (i.e. netbios aliases)
- installation is not easy for most users
- nobody uses it
Future Issues:
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- The number of configuration parameters, as much as we all hate them, are
likely to grow. Many will be for small strings or such things. The current
SWAT layout will not handle this very well
Wishlist:
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- a registry editor in swat
- the advanced / developer options available, but hidden from basic users
- a more beginner-oriented wizard
- I (vance) would like to see a something that asks a few questions, like
what do you want to do? (check all that apply)
o share files
o share printers
o be a domain controller
what kind of network are you on? (choose one)
o home network, no domain, no passwords
o small office network, no domain
o small office network, pre-existing domain
o medium network, pre-existing domain
o large network, pre-existing domain
what kind of computers are on your network? (check all that apply)
o w31
o W9x
o NT
o w2k
o xp / w2k3
- a "make copy" function for shares, to allow users to clone existing shares
then edit them
- some smarts for parameters:
- a user/group selector for things like valid users, admin users, read list,
write list, etc.
- an fs navigator for path type things